Before joining the Scorpions in 1996, he was a member of the bands Kingdom Come, Montrose, Warrant and the McAuley Schenker Group. He recorded five studio albums with the German formation and stayed with it for twenty years.
In May 2016, Mikkey Dee from Sweden replaced him during the American leg of the Return to Forever tour. At the same time, it was announced that Kottak’s absence is temporary. “We would love to continue touring with James, but his health is a priority. We wish him a speedy recovery, he will return to us in the fall,” Scorpions singer Klaus Meine commented on the situation. But that didn’t happen.
“This incident made me realize that it was time to finally stop drinking so that I could be a good father, musician and friend,” commented Kottak at the time.
In 2018, after many years, he returned to the reactivated American band Kingdom Come. But he was out of form and was often criticized for his performances. In recent years, due to unspecified problems, he rather missed concerts.
He claimed to have significantly cut down on alcohol from 2022, while admitting he never managed to quit completely. “I can’t say I’m done completely. It didn’t work that way in my case. I got into it and got out of it. It’s a continuous process,” he said in an interview.
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2024-01-09 21:43:56
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